The present invention relates to powered equipment having a heat exchanger, and more particularly to an apparatus and method for reducing heat exchanger clogging and debris accumulation.
Vehicles and equipment with internal combustion engines typically include a heat exchanger (e.g., radiator) that helps shed heat. In many applications, such as agricultural and off-road settings, debris may be present that can accumulate on and clog the heat exchanger. Debris can include caked dirt, trash, chaff, etc. Clogging and other accumulation is a particular problem because of fans that draw air through the exchanger to facilitate cooling, which can draw in debris incidental to the desired airflow. Equipment can potentially over-heat due to debris blocking the airflow over the equipment's heat exchanger packages. Clogged heat exchangers cannot reject heat as proficiently as clean heat exchangers due to a lower amount of total clean fin surface area. For example, heat exchanger clogging problems have multiplied in recent years as agricultural vehicles have increased in complexity and power output, without increasing heat exchanger size. This has necessitated heat exchangers to become more efficient while retaining the same exterior dimensions, causing fin density to increase, which means smaller passages between fins. Greater fin density only intensifies the rate at which dirt and debris will become clogged in the heat exchanger, requiring the vehicle operator to clean the heat exchanger much more frequently.
There is limited technology in existence used to clean a clogged heat exchanger, and existing solutions have numerous problems from long equipment down-times to high costs. Operators can manually remove debris, such as manually using compressed air hoses and an air compressor, but such efforts are burdensome and may be difficult to perform in the field. Manual cleaning carries undesirably high equipment down-times. Prior art approaches have included reversing cooling fan airflow in order to blow air out of the engine compartment through the exchanger to dislodge debris and reduce clogging. This approach, however, may be inadequate where an available fan cannot generate a reverse airflow. For instance, certain fan designs (e.g., hybrid flow fans) may be able to generate an intake airflow when rotated in one direction, but do not generate much of a reverse airflow when rotated in the opposite direction. Mechanisms to change the direction of fan rotation also add complexity and cost to the system. Furthermore, reversible pitch fans that can reverse airflow while rotating in the same direction tend to be expensive and require complex pitch actuation systems. Another problem is that altering the appearance of an exterior of a vehicle or other piece of equipment may be considered aesthetically displeasing to customers, who may forego a heat exchanger cleaning system that has an unattractive appearance from an exterior viewpoint.